Manitoba Crown seeks re-trial in Candace Derksen murder

The Crown prosecutor's office in Manitoba plans to take Mark Edward Grant to court once again in a re-trial for the death of Winnipeg teenagerCandace Derksen.

"After a thorough review of the matter, Manitoba Prosecution Service has determined that Mark Grant will be re-tried for the murder of Candace Derksen," a spokesperson for the province stated in an email to CBC News on Friday.

"Since its an ongoing matter, we wont be able to provide someone to comment further."

Adate for the trial has yet to be determined.

Earlier this month,theSupreme Court of Canada upheld a ruling by Manitoba's Appeal court, which ruled in 2013 thatanew trial should be held.

• Mark Edward Grant could get new trial in abduction, murder of CandaceDerksen

Derksen's mother, WilmaDerksen, told CBC News she is not surprised that a re-trial will take place. It will be another part of the family's journey to find the truth about what happened to her daughter, she said.

"We, I think, have come to peace with it,"Derksensaid. "I think we have mixed emotions because we know that it's an expense, we know that it's going to be a lot of time involved with this."

At the same time, she said, "We need to resolve the ongoing question. It's important to get it right. We need to allow for the process."

Grant was convicted in 2011 of second-degree murder in connection to the 1984 death of CandaceDerksen, 13. He wassentenced to life in prison with no parole eligibility for at least 25 years.

Candace disappeared on her way home from school on Nov. 30, 1984.Her frozen body was foundJan. 17, 1985, tied up with twine on the dirt floor of a storage shed in a brickyard about 500 metres from her family's EastKildonanhome.

Her death remained a public mystery until May 2007, when police came forward with new forensic evidence numerous tests on a piece of twine used to bind the teen linking Grant to the murder scene.

Granthasrepeatedly denied killing the teen and appealed the conviction.

The appeal courtruled in his favour, finding the trial judge was wrong to deny Grant's lawyer the right to present evidence that could have cast doubt on Grant's guilt by raising the possibilityDerksen might have been killed by someone else.

The provincial prosecutor's office appealed that decision to the Supreme Court, which upheld the call for a new trial.

Grant's lawyer disappointed

Earlier this month,Manitoba Justice Minister JamesAllumsaid his department would reviewSupreme Courtdecision and decide whether or not to pursue another trial.

Saul Simmonds, the lawyer representing Grant, said on Friday he had hoped the Crown would not have called a new trial following the Supreme Court decision.

"We are extremely disappointed, of course. From our perspective, the evidence is very strong and it points to Mr. Grant's innocence. He continues to maintain his innocence and we will vigorously defence the charges again if that's what we are called up on today," Simmonds said.

Simmonds said he is in the process of applying for bail for Grant.

As for when the new trial may be held, Simmonds said it's hard to say because a lot of preparation will be required.

"That's part of the difficulty in a case of this nature. It requires a significant expertise, a lot of experts who testify with respect to the case. It needs to be evaluated by whoever it is that will be prosecuting again. And these things take some time," he explained.

WilmaDerksensaid she does notknow if she can sit through another trial in its entirety.

"That's a question right now that we as a family are asking ourselves, and I think we are in a different place totally," she said.

"Some of us might go. I don't think we'll sit in the front row. I don't think we'll be as engrossed with it because I think we've arrived at a place where we know what the truth is."

Supreme Court made right call, says expert

David Milward, associate professor of law at the University of Manitoba, has saidthe Supreme Court made the right call in this case.

"The basic problem was that the defence in theoriginaltrial raised the possibility that there was another suspect," he said. "This was an ongoing police investigation while Mr. Grant was himself in detention awaiting trial."

Milward said the goal of the justice system is to get the right person, and questions have been raised about whether that happened in this case.

"That other investigation bore markedsimilaritiesto what happened to CandaceDerksen. Another girl got abducted, was left in an empty remote boxcar, tied with twine, the same knot and also a markedly similar gum wrapper blue brand was left at each scene.

"In fact, to take it a little further, the police during this investigation took this other girl to CandaceDerksen'sfuneral service in hopes that that other perpetrator would show up at the funeral service and that girl could identify him."